Acolyte 500
by ColdFusion180
Summary: The Acolytes have fun with some toys while Magneto gets another headache.


**Acolyte 500**

Piotr was walking down the hall when he heard some strange noises coming from Pyro's room. Curious, he pressed his ear against the door.

"Man that was great! Incredible! What'd ya think Gambit?" he heard Pyro ask.

"Yeah, it was alright. Though it could've been better," Remy sighed.

"Well maybe if we included some more accessories like I wanted."

"Oh, no. It's wild enough without adding all that other stuff."

"Fine. Be that way. Well let's do it again!"

"I don't know, I'm getting kinda tired."

"Oh come on!"

"Look, it was fun the first few times, but it's starting to lose its appeal."

"Really? You seemed really into it this last time 'round. And you seem to have a knack for this kind of thing."

"Well I have had some experience with this, but don't tell anyone. I have a reputation to uphold."

"Right, mate. Your secret's safe with me."

"Hey Russian!"

"What?!" Piotr spun around and saw Sabertooth walking up to him.

"What are you doing? And why is your face all red?" Sabertooth grunted.

"Uh…well…I…um…" Piotr stammered.

"Well, get over it. Boss wants to see us. Where's the Cajun and Firebug?" Sabertooth asked.

"Uhhh…" Piotr stuttered.

"Please, Gambit? Just one more time?" Pyro's voice came from the closed door.

"Alright, one more time. Just let me rest a bit first, okay?" Remy was heard saying. Sabertooth glanced at the door then shot a quizzling look at Piotr.

"Yay! You want to be on the top or bottom this time?" Pyro asked. Sabertooth's eyes bulged out in shock.

"Bottom. Less work," Remy said.

"WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON IN HERE?" Sabertooth threw open the door and stormed into the room.

"Hey, watch it!" Pyro yelled while standing on a ladder that nearly reached the ceiling.

"What in the world?" Piotr gazed at the towers of plastic ramps, chutes, funnels, jumps, pipes and stands that nearly filled the whole room.

"Watch what you're doing!" Remy shouted while sitting on the floor leaning back on Pyro's bed. He was also holding a pencil and clipboard. "Don't hit anything. You know how long it took to set all this stuff up?"

"What have you been up to? What is all this?" Sabertooth demanded.

"Marbleworks, the toys of geniuses," Pyro grinned.

"Marbleworks?" Piotr blinked.

"Yeah, Marbleworks," Remy looked at him. "What do you think we were doing?"

"Uh, nothing, nothing," Piotr turned beet red.

"You're playing with Marbleworks?" Sabertooth roared. "That's priceless! What, are you idiots two years old or something?"

"Hey, Marbleworks is great!" Pyro huffed. "They were one of my favorite toys when I was little. Oh, I'd play with them for hours! That is until my fascist parents took 'em away and threw them in the trash! Said they couldn't sleep with them in the house. Well what's wrong with playing with Marbleworks at three in the morning, huh?"

"And what's your excuse?" Sabertooth sneered at Remy.

"Hey, the only reason I got involved was because Pyro bugged me until I gave in," Remy explained. "It was either help him or be pestered for hours."

"Yeah, right," Sabertooth snarled.

"What is Marbleworks?" Piotr asked as he inspected some of the plastic ramps. "I have never heard of it."

"Oh it's great fun!" Pyro chirped. "You take all these plastic ramps and funnels and stuff and make a track in crazy combinations and then race marbles down to see them go through it and which ones come out first! It's the best!"

"Yeah, if you're IQ is smaller than your shoe size. Oh, wait. That applies to you doesn't it?" Sabertooth laughed.

"Hey, don't knock Marbleworks," Pyro warned. "Why Marbleworks is highly educational. It teaches you about the engineering principles utilized in construction. The physics of gravity, momentum, velocity, acceleration, potential and kinetic energy, and simple mechanics. The mathematical concepts of probability and chaos theory…"

"And it's a great way to make some easy money betting on the outcomes," Remy grinned. "So far I've won three hundred bucks, and that's just in the past few hours."

"You're just on a lucky streak! I'll come back, you'll see!" Pyro shook his fist at Remy.

"Either of you _hommes_ feeling lucky and want to join?" Remy asked his two teammates. "Here's the results of all the races we've done so far, how many times each contestant has won, and the updated odds board.

"Hmmm," Piotr bent down and looked at the clipboard in Remy's hands. "I'll take five on Lone Lancer." Piotr took out some money.

"This is the lowest and stupidest thing you clowns have ever come up with. I'm outta here," Sabertooth turned and headed out the door.

"Good thing you're leaving," Pyro called out after him. "You won't see Bouncing Tiger get his butt kicked again and end up in last place."

"What?" Sabertooth stopped in the doorway and spun around.

"Oh, yeah. Bouncing Tiger has had a run of bad luck," Remy consulted his records. "He's only won three out of seventy-two races and of his sixty-nine losses, he has placed last in fifty-four of them. The odds of him winning are twelve to one."

"Poor Bouncing Tiger," Pyro held out an orange marble with black stripes.

"Whaddya mean he's only one three times?!" Sabertooth growled. "You two must be blind or something. With his speed he should be raking the rest of 'em over the coals."

"Nope, he's that bad," Remy said.

"I don't believe it!" Sabertooth folded his arms in protest.

"Well then back him up this time round," Pyro suggested.

"Fine, I will!" Sabertooth stepped forward and took out some money. "Twenty on Bouncing Tiger!"

"You got it," Remy grinned.

"I'll take ten on Flamin' Demon," Pyro said from atop the ladder.

"Gotcha," Remy wrote down each bet. "And I'll bet thirty on Dealer's Wild."

"Alright! Let's get going!" Pyro loaded the marbles into the starter tray and prepared to send them off.

"Come on Bouncing Tiger! You can do it!" Sabertooth rooted.

"Here we go!" Pyro prepared to tip the tray.

"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?" Magneto stormed into the room.

"Aaahhhh!" Pyro jumped and started to fall backwards off the ladder. Fortunately Piotr reached up and propped him up until he was able to steady himself once more. "Whew! Thanks mate."

"SABERTOOTH I TOLD YOU TO ROUND UP EVERYONE AND MEET ME IN THE CONTROL ROOM! WHAT ARE YOU IDIOTS DOING?" Magneto yelled.

"In a minute," Sabertooth waved Magneto off.

"WHAT?!" Magneto looked around the room. "What is this?"

"Marbleworks. Want in?" Pyro asked.

"Oh no," Magneto groaned.

"Suit yourself" Pyro tipped the starter tray and set the marbles on their way. "And they're off!"

The marbles started going through the track as Pyro narrated. "It's Big Red first out of the starting funnel and speeding around the first turn, followed by Dealer's Wild, Bouncing Tiger, Lone Lancer, Orby, and Flamin' Demon. Now they're entering the maze and…oh! Flamin' Demon has cut off Big Red and now takes the lead! Orby is coming up fast on Lone Lancer but can't seem to gain any advantage. Here's the split! Flamin' Demon, Big Red, Bouncing Tiger and Orby take the right fork while the others take the left fork! Oh this is shaping up to be an exciting race!"

"Come on Bouncing Tiger!" Sabertooth cheered. "Go baby go!"

"Lone Lancer all the way!" Piotr shouted.

"Yay Dealer's Wild! Pappa needs a new deck of cards!" Remy chanted.

"I am not here," Magneto moaned. "I am delusional and having a bad dream. I am not here."

"Wow! It looks like Orby came out of the bumpers ahead and is now going through the paddlewheel. But wait! Dealer's Wild in the other path is roaring down the third funnel and is pulling ahead to take the lead! Now both leaders are coming back together in the intersection and have collided! They're both stuck and are unable to advance! But now Big Red comes up and rams Orby in the behind, jolting Dealer's Wild back and allowing Orby to resume the lead! Uh oh, here's the jump! Ahhhh! And Orby and Dealer's Wild both fail to make it and fall to a horrible demise!

"NOOOOOOOO!" Remy yells.

"Ah, now the rest are coming up, they jump and make it! It's on to the bypass with Bouncing Tiger looping around with incredible speed. It looks like he's gonna win and…wait! Lone Lancer cuts Bouncing Tiger off at the last second and exits the bypass first to enter the victory lane and win!"

"Yes!" Piotr cheered. "Lone Lancer forever!"

"LONE LANCER CHEATED! CHEATED I TELL YOU!" Sabertooth screamed. "BOUNCING TIGER WOULD HAVE WON IF LONE LANCER HADN'T KNOCKED HIM OUTTA THE WAY! I DEMAND A REMATCH!"

"You're on!" Remy collected the marbles and handed them up to Pyro. "Let's see who'll take home the bacon this time!"

"AAAARRRRGGGGHHHHH!" Magneto stormed out of the room while holding his head. "Two year olds! My Acolytes are nothing but a bunch of insane, overgrown two year olds! Why can't I ever get competent and mature recruits for a change? I bet Charles never has to put up with anything like this!"

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own X-Men: Evolution or Marbleworks.**


End file.
